1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to networked multimedia information systems, in which individual system units communicate with one another. In particular, the invention relates to kiosk newsstands.
2. Related Art
Known information systems of the above-mentioned type generally provide individual publicly accessible computer-based systems (kiosks) in which even users who are not trained in kiosk operation can rapidly call up information and conduct transactions. The data in this case can be present as discrete media (such as text and graphics) and as continuous media (such as audio and video).
Such systems also serve for the development of individual kiosks, where the kiosks are programmed with known development solutions, usually in a high-level programming language and where the corresponding programs are then only interpreted at run time. The production of the necessary programs is carried out either using context-sensitive editors (J. L. Encarnacao et al., "Autorenwerkzeuge fir multimediale Informationssysteme", in it+ti Informationstechnik und Technische Informatik, No. 2, pp. 31-38, Oldenbourg-Verlag, Munich, April 1993) or using known graphical development tools.
With the aid of such tools, a trained kiosk developer is generally adequately supported. However, even the maintenance and up-dating of the kiosks require reversion to these tools. The kiosk operator must therefore rely on the technical kiosk developer for maintenance and up-dating. In addition, the amendment of such programs is tedious and error-prone. The maintenance and up dating of kiosks with rapidly changing contents is thus awkward and expensive.
According to an article by Gerold Blakowski, Ralf Steinmetz and Daniel Kohler at the IBM European Networking Center, Heidelberg, entitled "Architecture and Implementation of a Distributed Multimedia--Kiosk System" and which appeared in it+ti-Informationstechnik und Technische Informatik, No. 37, p. 35ff., Oldenbourg Verlag, Munich, April 1995, central elements of multimedia kiosk systems are:
an object-oriented generic kiosk structure, which specifies both the processes within a kiosk as well as the media units incorporated. The structure and pertinent content data of the kiosk are stored in a persistent distributed database. PA1 an object-oriented run time system, which coordinates the process of a kiosk according to the kiosk structure and is particularly distinguished by short response times. The run-time system can be expanded by means of modules which can be uploaded during run-time, which carry out both the integration of instruments and communication services, as well as completing or overstocking internal functionalities. PA1 dedicated graphics editors, which support the kiosk developer in the production of the system and the kiosk manager in the care and maintenance. In particular, the manager can independently update the kiosk.
It is emphasized, that the above mentioned publication--in contrast to the existing invention--refers solely to a single place system (stand-alone).
In the design of a kiosk development and run-time system the following roles must be distinguished: The kiosk developer, who prepares the design, the media contents and the kiosk run-time structure; the kiosk manager, who makes the kiosk available; and the kiosk users. The kiosk developer determines first the design of the kiosk. The next kiosk developing step comprises establishing the media units used in the kiosk, that is to say, the media recording and the succeeding processing steps, such as digitizing, format converting and compression of individual media.
For the kiosk manager, a user-friendly care of the kiosk contents and the corresponding kiosk structure (see below) is essential. In order to update the kiosk he must be capable of making changes to the content himself, without having to consult experts in kiosk development. Frequently required changes involve changed texts, new pictures or incorporating and masking individual run paths within the kiosk. Generally there are also on-going updates needed with the inclusion, removal and displacement of individual kiosk pages. In networked systems it is also generally necessary, to send the updated contents automatically to all running kiosks, if the same kiosk type is installed at different places. With all changes the existing basic design of the kiosk should always be retained, that is to say, all changes should be executed only as part of previously determined design rules.
For the structuring of kiosk systems it has recently been proposed to establish an object-oriented record with attributed relationships between objects, as a result of which an abstract description of a kiosk structure inclusive of the possible run-time relationships becomes possible.
To develop an individual kiosk then only means the updating of the concrete kiosk objects and the determination of the relationships between the objects. The objects and their relationships are posted to an object-oriented database. One advantage is that, in the development of a new kiosk, the run-time system does not have to be changed, but it is sufficient to fill the kiosk database with other objects and to define the relationships between the objects.
A large part of the known kiosk systems are so-called "Stand-Alone" systems, in which the kiosks are not networked together. This implies that their information content is changed only rarely or even never, for a change requires a manual action by a system server, e.g. a specially trained engineer.
Networked kiosks are presently only implemented individually and are essentially realized on the basis of a central "Updateserver". Using a central server, new contents, such as new products or real estate offers can be distributed to all or a selected number of systems.
The design of a networked information system with the above described functionalities is, however, only possible with massive limitations using state of the art central server concepts.
Only in specific cases are the above mentioned problems solved by the current state of the art. For example, in the area of administration and control, a distributed computer network in which a group of data stations are joined together through a local network (LAN), is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 771 063 (AZ K1991054). In such systems, it is necessary to monitor the current condition of the network through a control device and to update the contents of distributed databases regularly. To improve data security in the network a network structure with redundancy is proposed, in which several control devices are provided, where at any given point in time only one device is active.
Furthermore in European Patent Application No. 5 019 963 (AZ UK987003) a computer network is described in which a plurality of data stations, e.g. personal computers (PC), is connected to a main computer. One data station, which wishes to take over leading a task, transmits information in reference to the relevant data records and the respective version number to the main computer. The main computer then ascertains whether the newest version of the data record exists on the PC concerned.
The problem of data integrity in the area of distributed data-base systems is the subject of a publication in the IBM Technical Disclosure Bulletin, Vol. 18, No. 8, January 1976 (AZ UK8740138). This Application particularly affects the updating of data records in a distributed system. A particular updating method is proposed, in which the main computer checks the data stations for the relevant latest version and, if necessary, deletes older versions.
In the World Patent Index, Research Disclosure, Ord.No. R08860098, a process for the updating and/or for the exchange of computer programs in a running computer system is disclosed, in which the computer system does not have to be switched off and/or shut down during the exchange. For this, a novel program-connecting mechanism is proposed, in which the calling and corresponding called program modules are not directly connected together ("linked"), but a corresponding control program along with a corresponding connecting table is inserted between them.